Commentary: Santa Fe, NM – Senate Majority Leader Peter Wirth and Senate Finance Chairman John Arthur Smith issued the following statement after the Legislative Finance Committee’s FY17 budget recommendations passed with bipartisan support.
“The Legislative Finance Committee has put forward responsible bipartisan budget recommendations for Fiscal Year 2017,” said Senate Majority Leader Peter Wirth. “The recommendations balance the 2017 budget without putting the burden on those that are the backbone of our community. This blueprint protects the investments we make in our teachers, law enforcement, and nurses while balancing the state checkbook. The plan we saw from the Governor earlier this week drains money from local communities and cuts the salaries of hard-working New Mexicans who we look to each day to keep our communities safe and our storefronts open. The Legislative Finance Committee has come to the table with responsible solutions and we look forward to working with the Governor to get us past this hurdle so we can again focus on creating jobs and stopping the downward spiral of the last six years.”
“Under Governor Martinez’s proposal, our state agencies and the families they serve would bear an even greater burden as a result of her refusal to act quickly,” said
Senator John Arthur Smith. “It’s imperative that we move quickly in a bipartisan and responsible manner that protects the very employees and the families that Governor Martinez’s proposal would leave holding the bag.”